PRO TENNIS TOUR
American Andy Roddick had to fight to get past Sebastien Grosjean of France as players gear up for England's main event

Top-seeded Lleyton Hewitt slumped 7-6 (4), 6-3 against Ivo Karlovic of Croatia, leaving the second-seeded Roddick favorite to take the title and join Hewitt and John McEnroe as the only players to win Queen's three straight years.

"It feels good -- Seb's had really, really good results on the grass the last couple years," Roddick said. "It was a tough draw for both of us. I'm just excited to be through and excited that my preparation's gone well for Wimbledon."

Grosjean, who fought off five match points to defeat James Blake on Thursday, often played the crisper shots and showed greater skill at the net.

The Frenchman earned the first break point of the match at 2-2, but he made a forehand error and later lost the opening set with consecutive double-faults.